MGSV TPP: The Butterfly Defect
by AkaneRules
Summary: Venom Snake/Big Boss takes Quiet to meet an old friend of his. At least, he thinks so...
1. Chapter 1

The Butterfly Defect

Quiet was laying comfortably on her stomach in her cell. She spent most of her days there since Kaz did not trust her to be around the fellow Mother Base soldiers despite the fact that the cell itself could not contain her in the first place. However, she knew that leaving it would cause more distrust between them so she did not bother doing so unless it was for a mission. Ocelot would come by every now and then to check on her but other than that, she was all alone with the sound of music echoing throughout the platform.

Venom Snake's combat boots could be heard clanking down the steps into the brig. Quiet sat up and cocked her head. Though they saw each other often during his missions, it was rare for him to visit her in the cell. He walked over to the bars and looked at her calmly before speaking.

"Come with me...There's someone I'd like for you to meet."

The brunette woman gave him an odd look. She did not like meeting new people especially on Mother Base since she was practically rejected by everyone she came across.

"C'mon, I think you two would get along." He reassured.

Quiet trusted his word and nodded. She phased through the bars and was now standing next to him. He gave her a nod as an order for her to follow him.

They made their way up the steps and was greeted by a saluting soldier who was stationed next to the entrance to keep guard. He noticed Quiet and almost panicked at the sight of her as if she were some rabid dog who had gone off leash. Venom took offense at his reaction and he gripped the man's neck with his bionic arm before choking him unconscious.

"Sorry about that." Snake cast the stunned man aside before continuing their small journey. He led her up three flights of stairs and finally to a door that led to the upper floor of the building.

Snake activated a button to open yet another door before finally entering the designated area. Quiet looked around curiously before looking at her partner.

"Paz, there's someone I'd like for you to meet."

From his point of view, there was a young blonde bandaged woman sitting up on the edge of a hospital bed. She was reading the book _Abolicion del Ejercito y Neutralidad de Costa Rica y la Organizacion de los Estados Americanos_ but looked up from it when Snake entered the room.

"Snake!" She smiled. She then turned her blue-eyed gaze to Quiet, "Who is this?"

"This is Quiet, a friend of mine." He introduced.

Quiet furrowed her brows slightly and was not exactly sure how to react to the situation.

"Pleased to meet you." Paz said politely. Noticing that there was no response, she giggled, "Her name is quite fitting, yes?"

Snake gave a brief chuckle, "It sure is."

Paz suddenly asked out of habit, "Do you have something to show me?"

"Besides her, nothing today. I haven't found any more pictures."

"Maybe next time." Paz smiled. She then looked back at Quiet and concluded their visit, "Please take good care of him. He always gets himself into trouble! But for now...I must rest." She looked a bit dizzy before finally laying back against her bed.

"I'll be back soon." Snake said a bit softly. He turned and looked at Quiet. She had a visible frown on her face and she looked at him in worry. He misinterpreted the look and responded with, "Don't worry. She's only resting."

He turned and made his way out the door they just came through. Quiet looked back at him but did not follow. She then tried to process what just happened as she looked out at the Seychelles waters from the empty, unfinished construction platform she was standing on.


	2. Chapter 2

The Butterfly Introspect

 _Clank clank clank._

Venom Snake's combat boots made their way back down the metal staircase. It had been over a week since Quiet last saw him. The Mother Base soldiers grew concerned about his absence as he kept himself preoccupied with side operations without any breaks.

For now, he came to visit Quiet once more. He leaned his back against the cell bars and looked down at the floor. Quiet sat up on her bed and looked at him curiously.

"When I took you to see _her_...you didn't see anything, did you?..." He spoke in a low and almost melancholy tone.

Quiet did not understand what he meant by "her" but then recalled the visit to the empty platform. She slowly shook her head and Snake gave a heavy sigh. Quiet gripped the bars next to him and moved closer, to have a better look at his face. On it, was utter grief and regret.

"Paz...worked for Cipher long ago...though she was his agent, each diary entry that she recorded revealed that wanted to leave that lifestyle…to be one of us..." He suddenly looked frustrated, "We didn't give her that chance...she eventually ended up in the hands of Skull Face and just when I thought I rescued her...we took her onto our helicopter and discovered she had a bomb in her stomach...but no one could have imagined there was another one in her-"

He did not finish the sentence.

Quiet's brows furrowed and a visible frown was on her face.

"For months, ever since I had awoken, I have felt the irrational pain in my bionic arm, the physical pain in my body, and have dealt with it all...but Paz...that's a phantom pain I can probably never be rid of…" He moved away from the bars and rubbed his forehead.

"I convinced myself she was alive this whole time; even to the point of rewriting her demise and for what? Only to have it be all in my head?..."

Quiet looked down and parted her lips as if to say something. Instead, she fazed through the bars as usual and stood beside him. She pointed at his chest, gesturing "you" before using her hand as a visor to represent "find" and finally holding her index and middle finger up to signal "peace".

When Snake saw the peace sign, he felt his heart grow heavy. He squeezed his eye shut and nodded.

"I should find peace...I'm sure that's what she would have wanted…She sacrificed her life to save the lives of everyone on that helicopter and because of that...I am forever grateful…" He looked at Quiet and said sincerely, "Thank you."

Quiet lightly smiled and gave a slow nod.

Big Boss took a deep breath and could suddenly feel a great weight lift from his chest. He missed Paz very much but now understood that she was resting in peace. She does not have to worry about war, about suffering, about Cipher, about Skull face...she can be free from all of that now.

After a few moments, Snake checked his iDroid and scrolled through his missions list. He found a few that interested him and asked, "Want to come to Africa with me? There's a soldier that's said to-"

Quiet snapped her fingers, interrupting him. She had a serious look on her face and pointed to the shower, physically telling him that he needs to relieve his stress and that he stinks from being away from Mother Base for too long.

He chuckled and shrugged, "Good idea…"


End file.
